Region’s best to race for record purse
WEST HAVEN, VT – History awaits on Saturday night, September 26 at The Dirt Track at Devil’s Bowl Speedway with the inaugural Fabian Earth Moving “Green Mountain Sprint Car Nationals” event. The race is Vermont’s largest Sprint Car show ever, boasting a record payout and the distinction as the first event to be co-sanctioned by the Lucas Oil Empire Super Sprints (ESS) and the NAPA Sprint Cars of New England (SCoNE).
The winner of the 25-lap A-Main feature race will pocket no less than $3,000, while the runner-up will take $2,000, third place scores $1,000, and all starters are guaranteed at least $300. A 10-lap “Shootout” race pays $500 to the winner, and bonuses for qualifying heat winners and A-Main lap leaders are also on tap.
Along with the cash, the winner will receive some unique trophies including the coveted “Coastal 181 Cup” presented by author, publisher, and former driver Lew Boyd, a New England Auto Racing Hall of Fame Class of 2015 member. Boyd will be busy on Saturday, as he travels to Devil’s Bowl following the groundbreaking ceremony for the North East Motor Sports Museum at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. In addition, longtime Devil’s Bowl sponsor Charlie Brown of Brown’s Quarried Slate returns to present the winner with a trophy carved from natural slate into the shape of the State of Vermont, weighing in at 20 pounds.
Several top Sprint Car teams from New England, New York, and Canada will be seeing the tight 3/10-mile track for the first time. SCoNE drivers have the advantage of having raced three times at The Dirt Track since it was built by Fabian Earth Moving last autumn, though a handful of ESS drivers have also raced there.
SCoNE kings Danny Douville – the newly crowned 2015 champion – and Chris Donnelly have won at Devil’s Bowl, and Will Hull, Kevin Chaffee, Jake Williams, Scott Holcomb, and local favorite Lacey Hanson have all run well. ESS stars Steve Poirier, Jason Barney, Paul Kinney, Matt Tanner, and Chuck Hebing have not raced at Devil’s Bowl yet, though Lee Ladouceur, Danny Varin, Cory Sparks, and James Hanson have.
In addition to the Sprint Cars, a special 35-lap, non-points race is also on the card for the Liberty Street Discount Beverage & Deli Sportsman Modified division, and the Renegade and Portland Glass Mini Stock classes will hold point-counting races toward the Berlin Optical Expressions Dirt Track Series.
General admission for the inaugural Fabian Earth Moving “Green Mountain Sprint Car Nationals” event on Saturday, September 26 is $20 for adults, $18 for seniors, and free for kids age 12 and under. Gates open at 4:00 p.m. with racing at 6:00 p.m.
Devil’s Bowl Speedway is located on Route 22A in West Haven, VT, four miles north of Exit 2 on U.S. Route 4. For more information, visit www.DevilsBowlSpeedwayVT.com or call (802) 265-3112. Devil’s Bowl Speedway is on Facebook at facebook.com/DevilsBowlSpeedway and on Twitter and Instagram at @DevilsBowlSpeed; follow the action using the #DevilsBowl hashtag.